Reform launches Scottish election campaign amid protests and controversy

Mr Farage also accused opponents in Scotland of having "Offord derangement syndrome" in a reference to the "Trump derangement syndrome" attack used by some supporters of the US president.

At the Reform event launching the party's Scottish election manifesto and unveiling its candidates at a Renfrewshire country club, he said: "Scottish politics up until this point has been very, very hostile to any other voice.

"They may go on being hostile to our voice but you know something now, they can't stop us, and I'll be here with you repeatedly, supporting our candidates, supporting Malcolm, supporting this campaign, between now and May 7."

In a day which saw a Reform MP claim she wanted to wear a tartan burka and heard Nigel Farage say all mass religous observance should be banned, the event was disrupted by an environmental protestor, while delegates were also greeted by Scottish nationalist protestors outside the venue calling the party "fascist".

During his speech, Nigel Farage blamed the UK's high energy prices on the "lunacy" of shutting down new oil and gas fields in the North Sea.

Railing against net zero, the Reform UK leader said the UK was "committing economic harakiri in the name of saving the planet".

And speaking about other political parties, he said: "They all agree on net zero. They all agree on their own great virtues.

"Well, we agree in opening up the North Sea, getting Scotland working again, getting Scotland cheaper energy, and you know what, after this election... we're the only ones that will deliver good, plain, common sense and a better way of life to everybody."

Despite the strict security at the event, a single protestor interrupted his speech.

From Green New Rising, Saul, a 25-year-old student from Dundee, shouted “Reform is not welcome here” before being led from the hall.

"You need a haircut, mate," Mr Farage shouted, adding "Wow, go back to work. No, sorry, you haven't got a job, have you?

"Those that don't work have plenty of time to come here... " before quickly adding "I bet he's not self-employed running his own business."

Meanwhile Reform UK Scotland leader Lord Malcolm Offord used his speech to announce that he wasn't just standing for election but "to be first minister."

The millionaire businessman said he wanted to use the "drive and ambition" he had in his personal life to make Scotland a success.

Announcing his party's Holyrood manifesto, he said he would cut taxes in Scotland to make them lower than England's, at a cost of £2 billion, without any cuts to frontline services.

Instead, he said, Reform would "shut down the quangos" to save money - though when later pressed on whether that would include health boards, Scottish Water or Transport Scotland, he said he "did not have a list" because "we are on the outside."

He told the conference: "Scotland, I believe, is underperforming and I feel that it is incumbent upon us to change that and it's time now for Reform UK in Scotland to unleash Scotland's potential."

He also accused the "Holyrood bubble" of ignoring the issue of unsafe streets for women and girls.

He said police were "overstretched to deal with a record number of strangers coming to Glasgow with different cultures and values to our own, making the city less safe for women and girls."

He said: "Why has this been ignored by the Holyrood bubble when polling makes it a top three issue of concerns for Scottish voters?"

He went on to say that Reform would ensure local people are prioritised for social housing.

Responding to the speeches, SNP Depute Leader, Keith Brown MSP said: “Nigel Farage and his band of mercenaries couldn’t care less about Scotland.

“We know Reform would sell off our NHS in a heartbeat, who knows what they’d do if they got their hands on our schools and other public services.

“Millionaires like Nigel Farage and Malcolm Offord are the beating heart of the Westminster establishment and they have no interest in what’s best for Scotland."

And Scottish Labour Deputy Leader Jackie Baillie said “It’s clearer than ever that Reform simply is not in this race. This manifesto has been scribbled on the back of a cigarette packet and the sums don’t add up.

“Reform Scotland has already poached its leader and dozens of candidates from the Tories – now it has pinched their half-baked policies too.

“While Lord Offord claims to be on the side of working people, he has produced a manifesto for wealthy landowners. This out of touch Tory tribute act cares so little about Scottish politics that it doesn’t even know what voting system we use.

“Malcolm Offord is the Count Binface of Scottish politics – a joke candidate here to do nothing but cause noise."

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay described Reform as "the gift that keeps on giving … to John Swinney."

He added: “As well as unveiling pro-independence candidates, Lord Offord has provided a roadmap to another referendum and is appealing to so-called ‘rational nationalists’.

“Nigel Farage has said he’s relaxed about another five years of SNP rule, and a vote for Reform only increases the chances of Swinney winning and unleashing his ‘secret plan’ for independence.

“Reform’s tax-cutting pledge doesn’t add up because – unlike the Scottish Conservatives – they have no detailed plans for cutting the out-of-control benefits bill."

Reform MP Sarah Pochin also addressed the conference, saying a Reform UK Scottish government would "restore law and order" in Scotland, Sarah Pochin has pledged.

"Reform will put police back on Scottish streets," she said. "Reform will stop the early release of prisoners and there will be no legalising of drugs, of heroin, under a Reform government."

She also said Reform would detain and deport all illegal immigrants in Scotland.